


The Spring Thaw

by coprime



Category: Mushishi
Genre: Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-12-19
Updated: 2008-12-19
Packaged: 2018-01-25 07:28:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,127
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1638956
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coprime/pseuds/coprime
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"The life of a mushishi always sounds so interesting to me," Tanyuu said.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Spring Thaw

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Jess Idres

The next time Ginko visited the Karibusa library, it was during the spring thaw. Snow still covered most of the ground, but shoots of green grass poked their way through and a few patches already had budding plants. Ginko's boots alternately crunched through the snow and sank into the soggy ground. One spot of mud in particular seemed determined to eat his boot, and he nearly dropped his cigarette when it finally released him.

He put out the cigarette when he reached the wall surrounding Tanyuu's home. There was a small pile of butts to the right of the door, Tama's way of asserting her authority over visiting mushishi right from the start. He knocked, and Tama answered, looking as old and sternly protective of her charge as always.

"Tanyuu's resting," she said.

"Ah. The forbidden mushi is acting up then?"

Tama didn't say anything as she admitted Ginko, but she didn't need to. Spring was a fertile time for living creatures, and the forbidden mushi felt the renewal of life as well. Tama served him tea as he waited for Tanyuu.

By happenstance or just plain luck, Ginko didn't manage to enjoy much of his tea -- although it was good tea -- before Tanyuu felt well enough to join him. Tanyuu settled herself on her cushion, and once she was comfortable, Tama retreated.

"Have you been keeping busy?" Tanyuu asked.

"Eh, more or less. Mushi are very good at making trouble."

Tanyuu smiled impishly. "But they still don't cause as much trouble as people, right?"

Ginko laughed at that and shook his head no. Tanyuu laughed too, with such cheeriness that Ginko couldn't help but return her smile.

"The life of a mushishi always sounds so interesting to me," she said.

Ginko thought of the many nights and days he'd had to spend on the road as well as the many places he'd seen and people he'd met. He shrugged. "It's probably not as exciting as it sounds."

"Yes, I know, but..." Tanyuu frowned slightly as she thought. "I hear all these stories about mushi, but I don't ever see any unless a mushishi is showing me one he captured."

"What about the shimi?"

"They're the only mushi not scared away from here by the forbidden mushi. I think that's why I like them so much."

Ginko had to ask. "Even when they hatch and destroy the scroll?"

"Especially then!" Tanyuu smiled. "Besides, I have to recopy the old scrolls anyway when the ink on them starts to fade."

"If you say so.... Oh! I have a story that I think will amuse you."

"Oh?" Tanyuu asked, her curiosity writ large across her face.

"It involves a mushi with a fondness for chicken feed and a family cat who could see mushi. For as long as the family had owned the cat, they'd thought it crazy because it was always pouncing and chasing things that weren't there...."

Tanyuu listened, rapt, as he told his story.

* * *

Sometime late that night -- he didn't know precisely when -- Ginko snuck out to smoke a cigarette. Tama didn't allow cigarettes in the library at all, and she didn't approve of them in the rest of the house either. She never said anything if a visiting mushishi lit up while talking to Tanyuu, but she glared. Ginko found it disconcerting and so generally refrained from smoking as he and Tanyuu chatted.

Ginko wondered if he looked as ridiculous as he felt, slipping away for a furtive meeting with an object.

He found a good-sized boulder, one of the few landmarks in the open fields that surrounded Tanyuu's home, and sat down to smoke.

It was, he eventually decided, a nice night if a dark one. Clouds filled the sky and blocked out the moon, but they also kept the temperature from dropping too much. Although it was still cool enough that he felt grateful for his coat. He was on his second cigarette when he saw something in the corner of his eye.

Ginko peered into the darkness, trying to make out whatever it was that had caught his attention. It took a few minutes but then--

Ah, there! A small light floating in the air some distance away. Ginko crept close enough to confirm that the light was what he thought it was before hurrying back to the house, grinning all the way.

Once inside, he tread quietly to Tanyuu's room. It wouldn't do to wake Tama up instead. He could see a light shining inside Tanyuu's room and knocked quietly. She answered wearing her sleepwear and another robe on top for modesty. She looked tired to Ginko's eyes.

"Yes?" she asked.

"There's something outside I think you'd like to see."

"All right." She hitched her crutches closer before following him.

Tanyuu faltered some once outside, and Ginko slowed his pace to match hers. The soft ground made her crutches difficult, plus Ginko suspected the forbidden mushi had been bothering her more than she wanted either him or Tama to know. But once she caught sight of the flickering lights -- a few more had popped up while he'd been gone -- she gasped in delight.

"Are those what I think they are?"

Tanyuu rushed forward without waiting for his answer. The mushi surrounded her, and as she took them all in, she had more unfeigned eagerness in her than he had seen in a long time. The mushi were lit from within like pale lavender glowworms with slightly darker spots peppering their bodies. Each body consisted of three arms connecting to each other via a central circle.

The mushi seemed as fascinated by Tanyuu as she was with them. They took turns gliding close and prodding her lightly with an arm before twirling away into the night. Tanyuu reached a hand out, and the smallest one took the chance to play amongst her fingers.

Eventually Tanyuu paused long enough to ask him, "What's their name?"

"Kaihyouki. They live in the sky normally but fall to the earth with the first big snowfall and hibernate through the winter. They're already sleeping when they fall, so they don't have a choice about where they fall."

"And when the snows melt, they come out of hibernation," she finished. "Will they just go back up to the sky?"

"Yes. Kaihyouki like the cold. But before they go, they'll stick around for a few nights playing."

Tanyuu walked over to where he was and stood in front of him. A few kaihyouki trailed after her, but the remnants of smoke that still clung to his clothes kept them from getting too close. Her bright smile, which he could see quite clearly now, made him made him glad for the life he'd led thus far.

"Thank you," she whispered.


End file.
